Tag Archives: bird bath heater

With fall in full swing and winter on the way here are some useful tips to make sure our feathery friends make a stop in your backyard throughout the season.

1. Clean your bird feeder
Get your feeders ready for fall and winter by cleaning them up. Start by emptying the feeder. In a bucket, combine 10 parts water to one part bleach if you wish to use a safe disinfecting solution. Using an old rag, wash and rinse the bird feeder thoroughly. Air dry the feeder or dry it with a towel if you are in a hurry.

2. Choose a bird feed that is high in protein and fat and stock up.
With temperatures dropping birds begin to grow in winter feathers and start storing energy for the cold weather. Try using black oil sunflower seed as your basic go-to bird seed stock. If you are more ambitious, you can use a mix of 60% black oil sunflower seed, some roasted no-shell peanuts, a bit of safflower and some white millet. Bird seed mixes may attract a wider variety of migratory birds.

3. Don’t deadhead your garden
Leave your flowers blooming, it’s less work for you and the birds will love eating the fresh supply of food. The wilder your garden the more lively an ecosystem.

4. Save your pruning clippings
If you have some pruning to take care of in your garden, be sure to save all the clippings in a pile. A clippings pile will provide a perfect safe spot for smaller birds to fly into and hide.

5. Use a heated birdbath
Finding fresh water in the winter is incredibly difficult for birds, and your birdbath will be a great source! Along with using a heated birdbath it’s important to change the water regularly.